The Story Behind Tecassia (And What We’re Building Next)
Welcome!
Welcome to the Tecassia Publishing blog, we’re so excited to have you here. We created Tecassia—a publishing home built on partnership, craft, and genuine author support. We’re building this blog as a useful resource for authors, valuable community for readers and to talk about what we love most of all: books and stories! But before we do that, we thought it was important to introduce the faces behind the name, our vision, mission and what you can expect to find here first. Read on to get to know how Tecassia came to be, meet co-directors Camilla and Emily, discover our imprints and what you can expect from the Tecassia blog.
The Tecassia Story: How We Got Here
Tecassia’s Genesis
Camilla dreamt of being an author long before Tecassia existed. As a child she spent hours writing poems and making up stories. She woke her mum up at 5AM asking to be read stories (with the voices, of course!) Her mum called her a ‘book monster’ because she seemed to devour every book she read so quickly. However, her writing dream died at eight years old when a relative made a comment on one of her stories that made her feel inadequate. She stopped writing and made herself forget she ever wanted to be a writer.
But she still loved stories and wanted to be around them. She wanted to illustrate books (until a teacher told her she couldn’t draw). Camilla studied graphics in high school and college and not knowing what else to do with herself, she continued her design studies at university. It was during her Bachelor of Arts that she discovered Design for Publishing. A lightbulb moment! She might not be able to write the books but she could design the books instead.
Camilla threw herself into design for publishing. Embracing her love of typography, she passed the International Society of Typographic Designers’ (ISTD) rigorous student assessment and worked on live book projects for an independent press. She continued working with small presses as she completed her Master of Arts in Communication Design and then launched herself into working as a freelance book designer in 2012.
Camilla explored many avenues of design: book design, branding, packaging, websites and surface pattern illustration. She’s even worked as a wedding photographer. By 2019, she came full circle back to books when a client she was working with asked if she could help design a book they were writing. The conversation grew and by the end of it, Camilla had agreed to publish the book on the client’s behalf.
Drawing inspiration from the shetland sheepdogs that had always been her faithful muses, Camilla used letters of all her dogs names to come up with a brand name and Tecassia was born on 1st December 2019. Initially, Camilla offered book design and production support to both self-publishing authors and offered publishing under the Tecassia brand.
Evolution and Recognition
Soon it became clear that Tecassia needed to evolve. Authors kept coming to Camilla with the same message: ‘I want to work with you but I’m still writing, can you help?’ She shied away, unsure of how to help anyone with her own hang-ups about writing.
In March 2020, Camilla’s father rang — Cyprus where he lived was going into lockdown (Covid-19 pandemic) and he didn’t know what to do with himself. He mentioned a book idea he’d had years ago that he wanted to work on but didn’t know how to get started, asking for Camilla’s help. An idea was born: the Manuscript in a Month Challenge (MIAM).
Camilla set to work getting the challenge prepared and launched it with 35 participants throughout May 2020. It was a tremendous success. Participants loved the camaraderie and community, lots of writing was done — some authors even finished their manuscripts and published them! Emily was one of the participants and it was during this time that Emily and Camilla began their long-term collaboration and friendship.
Tecassia was gaining momentum with a small yet growing catalogue of books. Tecassia made The Family Network Small Business of the Year shortlist and its book were gaining recognition. Beyond Words received the Mom’s Choice Gold Award and publications were shortlisted in the Business Book Awards.
To expand her offerings for authors, Camilla completed a Proofreading and Editing diploma along with an ILM Level 7 Diploma for Executive & Senior Level Coaches and Mentors. By 2022, she was an EMCC UK (European Mentoring and Coaching Council) accredited Senior Practitioner and was able to offer writing coaching to aspiring authors.
Using these coaching skills, Camilla gained real insight into the author mindset, confidence issues and writer’s block as she worked through blocks to reignite her own writing dream. This led to her first book Unravelling Inwards: A Journey Of Embracing The Divine Feminine in which she charted her emotional healing journey through her work with Emily as a guide for others.
How Emily found Tecassia
Emily started her journey to becoming the co-director of Tecassia with Camilla about six months before she and Camilla met. As a holistic practitioner and coach for 20 years, Emily is a strong believer in walking your talk and continues to work with practitioners herself on a regular basis. During 2019, Emily was working with a hypnotherapist and in one of her sessions the idea bubbled up from her subconscious that she needed to find a publisher, that she had a book to write. With no idea where to start Emily filed this idea away for future. In 2020, Camilla and Emily met on a group project and Emily realised she had found her publisher. Within weeks Emily had joined the MIAM challenge.
While helping Camilla on the personal healing journey that would become the story of Unravelling Inwards, Emily was healing her own limitations around her relationship to creativity and what it would mean to be a writer. She was using all her holistic tools and support to find her voice and even heal her migraines that would activate every time she attempted anything creative. Camilla was a constant support and encouragement throughout this time, believing everyone has valuable stories to tell if they are honest with themselves and everyone can learn how to express this authentically.
The Hiatus and Rebirth
After several years of supporting each other in their respective businesses, Camilla and Emily decided to officially become business partners in March 2023 focusing on executive coaching services. But before they could really get properly started, life went on hold for Camilla as her health spiralled into crisis from May 2023. The coaching business and Tecassia had to take a back seat.
Following three miscarriages, an ectopic pregnancy and diagnoses of endometriosis and Sjögren’s disease, Camilla found herself and her priorities irrevocably changed by her experiences. Writing had become her lifeline and a catharsis and throughout the long period of illness and grief, the one dream Camilla held onto was that she wanted to write her own fiction and put it out into the world.
As she re-evaluated her life going forward, ongoing unpredictable health and energy levels meant 1:1 coaching was no longer an option, nor something Camilla desired to do. After lots of reflection, Camilla shared her feelings with Emily about her writing and publishing dreams and her honest feelings about returning to the world of executive coaching. They decided to reshape the business, focusing once again on Tecassia, bringing Emily’s holistic practitioner background and combined coaching experience to offer mindset support to authors. Tecassia formally became Tecassia Ltd on the 4th November 2025.
Rather than trying to be everything to everyone, Tecassia was relaunched with a clearer mission and vision as a result of Camilla’s decreased capacity. Tecassia stopped offering production services to self-publishing authors, with a renewed focus on building Tecassia’s own catalogue through its imprints and offering a series of self-led and group course training options for independent authors.
Moving away from a hybrid publishing model, Tecassia is aligning itself with more traditional publishing models (i.e. not charging authors for publishing services upfront akin to hybrid publishing), while seeking to elevate Tecassia’s publishing model to offer integrated author mindset and career support, better book marketing, higher royalties and a collaborative approach to publishing with its authors.
Meet the Team: Camilla & Emily
Camilla Fellas Arnold
Co-Director, Founder, CEO
I’ve been working in design and publishing and with books since 2012 having studied BA (Hons) Design for Publishing and MA Communication Design at university. During my studies I passed the International Society of Typographic Designers Student Assessment and was shortlisted in the RSA Student Design Awards which launched me into working as a freelance book and graphic designer.
As Tecassia evolved into more than just book production services, I gained a proofreading and editing qualification, an ILM Level 7 coaching and mentoring qualification and became an accredited EMCC UK Senior Practitioner allowing me to fully support aspiring authors from start to finish—from concept through to publication which is so rewarding. While there’s nothing quite like holding the finished book in your hands, I believe the ride to get there can be just as fun.
I don’t believe in suffering or starving as a creative, I want to help authors build a fruitful career that pays well without draining their spirit. It is important to me that I help authors build a life full of as much imagination and freedom as what they create within their stories and I say that for myself too. I was once told as a child that my story wasn’t good enough, and then that my drawing wasn’t good enough—I’ve worked hard to break those limiting beliefs so that I can write again and I hope to help other authors do the same.
At Tecassia, I currently oversee the publishing process, working with authors to help them develop their concept, supporting them in their writing and then managing the book production and publishing process. As CEO, I hold the vision for what Tecassia wants to be—essentially I steer the ship!
Outside of that I am working on my own writing; poetry (always!), fiction and nonfiction. I seem to have several fiction ideas in development at any given time which gives me plenty of variety and means I’m never truly procrastinating because all of them will be finished eventually (or so I tell myself!) When I’m not writing or working, you’ll find me walking with my Shetland Sheepdogs, trying out another afternoon tea or at an escape room because I love a good puzzle!
5 Quickfire Questions
- What I’m Reading Right Now: Good Spirits by B.K. Borison.
- Favourite Part Of Publishing: Holding the finished book in my hands!
- Paperback or Hardback: Nothing beats a beautiful hardback with a special finish for me.
- Favourite Genre: Fantasy holds a special place in my heart although I don’t read it as much these days.
- Favourite Childhood Book: Wanted, One Dragon by Beth Webb.
Emily Tuck
Co-Director, COO
I have been a holistic practitioner and coach for over 20 years. Expertly blending traditional coaching with subconscious tools, bodywork, and vibrational tools to treat the whole person. I specialise in divine feminine and goddess work to heal limiting subconscious patterns including those from our ancestors and our past lives.
I have an ILM Level 7 Diploma in Executive Coaching and Mentoring and I am an EMCC Senior Practitioner. I am also qualified in Touch for Health Kinesiology, and Health Kinesiology, Transforming DNA Memories, Epigenetics, Sound Essences, Holistic Massage, Bowen Technique, EFT Tapping and Healing. I bring all of this knowledge and experience to Tecassia, to the authors we work with and to my own writing.
In my role at Tecassia I wear lots of hats. I coach our authors, offering mindset and energy support throughout the writers journey. I make sure all of logistics of the business run smoothly and become a reality, all things from uploading the self led support materials and courses, to making sure the authors get their royalties.
5 Quickfire Questions
- What I’m Reading Right Now: The Wartime Book Club – Kate Thompson
- Favourite Part Of Publishing: When an idea goes beyond a passing thought you can barely grasp and you realise it has legs enough to become a book series.
- Paperback or Hardback: Paperback, I love that I can carry it anywhere.
- Favourite Genre: Fantasy, adventure stories, whimsical lands and magical stories.
- Favourite Childhood Book: Matilda by Roald Dahl – I wanted to be Matilda and read all the books in the library.
What Tecassia Offers: Our Publishing Model
Indie Publishing, Defined
Tecassia Publishing is an independent press built on decades of publishing experience and a genuine belief that authors deserve better than the industry’s default settings. We’re not a vanity press, a hybrid model, or a pay-to-play operation—there are no upfront fees here. We no longer offer book production services for self-publishing authors or offering self-publishing training. What we are is a small press with high standards, real expertise, and a long-term vision for the authors we work with.
We won’t pretend we can offer what the major houses offer. We don’t currently pay advances, and we’re honest about that. What we do offer is a truly collaborative relationship where you, your book and your career truly matter. That means working closely with you at every stage, from editorial through to positioning and publication, with dedicated support around author mindset, platform building, and marketing strategy. We want you to understand your readership, grow your presence, and build something sustainable at whatever level of involvement and creative control you wish to have.
We also believe authors should be properly rewarded for their work, which is why we offer royalty percentages significantly above the industry norm. Authorship should be allowed to be a complete job within itself, without authors having to split their time between writing and part or even full time jobs just to pay the bills. Humans have been storytelling for thousands of years. Your creativity is integral to the fabric of humanity and we work hard to ensure our authors royalities reflect that.
We’re selective because we have to be—every title on our list is one we’re genuinely championing, not just cataloguing. If we offer you a contract, it means we believe in your book and in you as an author worth investing in.
Our Imprints: A Home for Every Story
Tecassia Publishing (Literary Fiction | Creative Nonfiction | Charity Publications) Our flagship imprint for work with literary ambition and emotional depth. We welcome literary fiction that challenges and moves readers, creative nonfiction that blurs the boundary between the personal and the universal, and select charity publications where the work serves a wider purpose.
Wyrd and Wyld (Historical Fiction | Myth & Folklore Retellings | Women-Centred Narratives) For stories rooted in history, myth, and legend — particularly those that recentre women’s voices and experiences. We love a retelling that finds a genuinely fresh angle, and historical fiction that brings the past to life without sanitising it. If your manuscript draws on folklore, fairy tale, or ancient myth through a feminist or feminine lens, this may be your home.
Vici Fiction (Contemporary Women’s Fiction | Romance | General Trade Fiction) Warm, compelling, commercially minded fiction with heart. We’re looking for contemporary stories that speak to women’s lives in all their complexity — love, friendship, identity, reinvention. We want romance with emotional intelligence and women’s fiction that doesn’t underestimate its readers.
Nexus Noir (Mystery | Crime | Thriller | Suspense) Taut, compelling, and character-driven. We want the kind of crime and suspense fiction where the stakes feel real because the people do. Strong plotting is expected; what will set your submission apart is the depth beneath it.
Siga Siga Poetry (Poetry Collections | Prose Poetry | Chapbooks | Anthologies) Named for the Greek phrase meaning slowly, slowly — because that’s how good poetry should be read. We publish collections and chapbooks from poets with a distinctive voice and a body of work worth sitting with. We’re also open to themed anthologies that cohere around a strong concept.
Sacred Illuminations (Spirituality | Divine Feminine | Holistic Practices | Women’s Emotional Journeys) For books that explore the inner life, healing, and the sacred — particularly through a feminine or feminist spiritual lens. This imprint welcomes works on the divine feminine, embodied spiritual practice, emotional healing, and the intersection of the personal and the transcendent. Think less self-help-by-numbers, more lived wisdom.
Pigwig Books (Children’s Picture Books | Early Readers | Chapter Books) Joyful, imaginative, and beautifully crafted stories for young readers. We’re looking for picture books with genuine charm and originality, and early chapter books with the kind of characters children want to follow across multiple adventures.
[TBA Imprint] (Science Fiction | Fantasy | Speculative Fiction) Coming soon. We’re actively building this imprint and looking for bold, imaginative work — science fiction with big ideas and human hearts, fantasy with world-building that rewards the reader, and speculative fiction that uses the genre to say something true. Particularly interested in work with series potential and underrepresented voices within the genre.
What to Expect from This Space
For Authors:
Our blog is a space where we plan to share our expertise and resources, offering honest and practical guidance on writing craft and publishing. We plan to cover in detail, the difference between traditional publishing, self-publishing, hybrid publishing, indie press and other models of publishing to help you make informed choices about what suits your goals as an author. We’ll be sharing tips and tricks for every aspect of the writing and publishing process to help you truly understand the industry and how to make it work for you.
Between our blog articles, self-led courses and live workshops, we support authors in developing their writing craft across genres. Emily’s holistic background and Camilla’s deep understanding of the creative industry and creative psyche have led them to develop resources and courses to support the often overlooked author mindset. Whether you’re dealing with imposter syndrome, burn out or overwhelm, we’ll guide to on how to build a sustainable and fulfilling creative practice.
We’ll be transparent about the publishing process and documenting our own journey to build an indie press. Publishing as an industry is often full of ‘smoke and mirrors’, but we plan to demystify every step, simplify the jargon and make publishing and authorship much more accessible. Going forward we’ll share behind-the-scenes from both sides of the coin: the publishing, production and business side as well as insights and behind the scenes from the authors we work with.
For Readers:
We want to create a space and community here as much for readers as we do for authors. On the blog and in our newsletter, we’ll celebrate our amazing indie published books with book recommendations and curated reading lists. You’ll be able to discover your next favourite author and get to know them better with author spotlight interviews and ‘making of’ features.
Read along with us with our upcoming book club where you can meet like-minded people, meet the authors and get all your burning questions answered about your favourite books! We’ll be helping our authors develop their street teams and fan clubs which readers can join and if you’re a book blogger, reviewer or just love to get hold of the next up and coming books first, we’ll be sharing ways you can join our beta reading and ARC (advance review copy) teams.
Beyond the books we publish, we’ll be exploring wider book culture so we can truly be in conversation with you as a reader. This is a chance for you as a reader and us as a publisher to work together to really shape the publishing landscape. What do you want to see more of? What do wish could change? Let’s talk about it! We also plan to share insights into the indie publishing world from a reader perspective, helping you understand what it’s really like for authors trying to make a living from their books and how you can support indie authors.
Our Commitment:
Our commitment on this blog and in this space is to post regular, valuable content for both authors and readers alike. We always want to be honest, offering real talk and valuable conversations, not just promotional fluff. We’re committed to building a community of authors and readers who value quality, craft, and independence and we hope that you will choose to be part of what we’re building!
Whether you’re an author finding your path or a reader looking for your next great book, we’re glad you’re here. This is just the beginning!
